Shame turned to sweat for the over-heating baker's assistant as his wife, sister, brother-in-law, and the kids all stuffed themselves into the bathroom around the machine to have a laugh.

Fireman Dave Dillon told the Daily Telegraph that he was on duty Sunday when the family called in to tell them "a man was stuck in a washing machine."

"We thought we'd get there and he'd have his hand stuck," Dillon told the paper. "He was in an absolute lather of sweat when we got there. He was really well attached to it."

The paper said the freshly laundered father waited for an hour with his knees pressed up against his chest before firemen finally arrived.

The rescuers told the sweaty, stuck dad that taking the machine apart would be a last option because Toom would have still been wedged in the tub, which they'd then have to cut open — and his sister heaved a sigh of relief.

Instead, firemen reached into the machine, dislodging Toom's foot from where it had been stuck.

The bashful Toom said he's decided to change the hide-and-seek rules for his kids.

"I hope they don't go hiding in any washing machines now," he told the Daily Telegraph.

— Thanks to Out There reader Tim B.

Mouse-House Tale Has More Holes Than Swiss Cheese

A small-town Fort Sumner, N.M., rumor that a mouse got revenge against a homeowner who tried to dispose of it in a pile of burning leaves by burning his house down has been shot full of holes, according to local KOAT-TV News.

As earlier reported in Out There, Luciano Mares, 81, claimed to The Associated Press that after he threw the burning mouse out, it ran to just beneath a window, spreading flames throughout the house from there.

Mares has since doused the burnt-out mouse tale.

"It's really humorous more than anything that a mouse burned down the house," Mares told KOAT-TV. "Thing is, the mouse was dead when it hit the burning leaves."

High winds probably drove the flames up to the house, he said.

The rumor most likely got started by "a little too much excitement" at the time of the fire, Capt. Jim Lyssy of the Fort Sumner Fire Department told KOAT-TV.

Mares said he has no insurance and lost everything in the blaze — but added that he still can manage a smile thinking about the flaming mouse story.

"I started laughing, and I'll be laughing from now on," he told KOAT-TV. "It's silly."

— Thanks to Out There readers Melissa P., Betsi A. and Mike M.

Goodness, Gracious, Great Beards of Fire!

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (AP) — A mascot at a minor league hockey game was burned when his fake beard and jersey ignited during a botched fire-breathing stunt.

John Robinson of the Johnstown Chiefs sustained minimal face and chest burns Friday, Chiefs general manager Toby O'Brien said. Robinson was taken to Conemaugh Memorial Hospital for overnight observation and released.

"He's a fan who is very much devoted to the city and the hockey team," O'Brien said. "I'm sure he'll be back on the ice."

Robinson, who has played the role of Puckhead for several years, was entertaining fans before the start of a game against Reading.

According to witnesses, Robinson poured the flammable liquid into his mouth and tried to light it, but it didn't work. When he tried a second time, Robinson's fake beard and jersey caught fire. An arena employee rushed to help him pull off his jersey as Robinson tore off the beard.

— Thanks to Out There reader Derek H.

Store Robber Really Needs to Try Something New

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — A man already on probation after robbing the same place multiple times is accused of doing it again.

Christopher Harris, 19, of Green Bay, was charged with armed robbery Monday in the holdups at the Astor Park Mini Mart.

Harris was serving five years' probation after spending about a year in jail on two counts of armed robbery. That case involved stickups at the East Mason Shell station three times over six days in July 2004.

In the latest case, police said they apprehended Harris after a robbery Sunday night. Clerks told officers the same man also robbed the store around 6 a.m.

Police said the robber gave the clerk a bag and demanded money while holding one hand in his pocket as if he had a weapon. The clerk pushed an alarm that summoned police.

Officers used a video surveillance system to identify Harris as a suspect, and a witness told them she saw a man run from the store to a car, according to a criminal complaint.

Police saw a car matching the description, stopped it and found Harris inside, along with cigarettes and cash from the store, authorities said.

Harris remains in jail in lieu of $10,000 bail.

Time to Buy Some Pampers ...

ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) — The first surprise was when three sisters discovered they were pregnant and due around the same time.

But the bigger surprise came last week when their babies were born on three consecutive days at the same hospital in this St. Louis suburb. The sisters live in Warrenton, about 40 miles away.

"I've had sisters deliver within a week or so of each other, but nothing like this," said Dr. Evelyne Schuetz. Her medical partner offered to deliver the third, but Schuetz said no way.

Jamie Roden, 24, checked into St. Joseph Health Center the next afternoon, and Kara Grace Roden arrived at 9:23 p.m.

"It was a complete joke the entire pregnancy that we'd have them at the same time, Duvel said. "But none of us really thought it would ever happen."

Their mother, Sondra Dames, 53, stayed at the hospital nearly the entire time.

"By the end of it our mom was so tired, it looked like she was the one that had had a baby," Roden said.

"She went through more labor than we did," Mueller added.

— Thanks to Out There reader Ryan G.

Wait, Giant Hairy Beasts Attract Tourists?

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Reported sightings of a "Bigfoot" in southern Malaysia's jungles could be used as a tourist draw, officials said, as they planned another expedition to track the mythical beast.

Malaysian media have been gripped by "Bigfoot" fever ever since some fish farm workers reported seeing three giant human-like hairy beasts in November at the edge of the Endau Rompin National Park forest.

The workers also claim to have seen a gigantic footprint, which they photographed and gave to local newspapers.

No plans have been made yet on how the story could be used to attract tourists to the state, said Abdul Jabar Tahir, general manager of the Johor Tourism Action Council. But the purported sightings could benefit Malaysia's tourism industry, he said.

"The national parks officials must do more fact finding, but like the Loch Ness monster, this can bring some good for our country," he told The Associated Press recently.

A team from the Johor National Parks Corporation — which manages the Endau Rompin reserve — conducted a one-day expedition last month to survey the area where the beasts allegedly were sighted. A second expedition was planned for February.

Compiled by FOXNews.com's Andrew Hard.

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